Prof who went viral for flying to BC weekly for work explains his love for Edmonton
This professor loves Edmonton so much that he commutes to his job in Vancouver by air each week from the Alberta home he shares with his family.
Earlier this week, Nima Nassirian shared his story with Daily Hive, where he detailed his schedule of teaching master of business administration (MBA) students in Vancouver and spending three days a week at his Edmonton home with his wife and two children.
Nassirian moved to Edmonton two years ago to be closer to his wife’s family and to afford the type of home they wanted to raise their kids in.
On Sunday evenings, Nassirian departs YEG for Vancouver and returns home on Thursdays — just in time to watch his son’s hockey game. He spends a total of approximately $6,000 per month on his Edmonton mortgage, rent on a Vancouver apartment for the weekdays, and weekly roundtrip flights between the two cities.
All that is about half the price of monthly mortgage payments on an equivalent house in Vancouver — which Nassirian estimates would cost about $2.5 million.
It’s an unconventional setup, but one Nassirian says is more than worth it. He and his family enjoy a high quality of life in Edmonton, and he can do what he loves at an institution where he feels grateful to work.
The family knows they couldn’t afford the same lifestyle if they moved to Vancouver. Nassirian’s son is in hockey, his daughter attends daycare, and they still save enough to take yearly vacations. Plus, as an avid motorcyclist, he’s found multiple racetracks and communities in Edmonton that he doesn’t want to leave behind.
“My son and my daughter have made great friends in their schools and their daycare. My son’s best friend, he’s in Grade 1 now, and that was his best friend in Kindergarten, now that’s his best friend in Grade 1,” he said.
Nima Nassirian/Submitted
“I had divorced parents, and I constantly had to move around. Every time I went to a new school, I had to make new friends. I was always a little bit jealous of those kids who had their best friends since Grade 1, and now they’re in high school. I don’t want that experience for my kids.”
Nima Nassirian/Submitted
We asked Nassirian why he decided to commute to Vancouver instead of finding employment at a school in Alberta. He explained that he feels a lot of gratitude toward University Canada West where he teaches, and he loves the students, staff, and faculty.
“It’s not that I couldn’t get a job in Edmonton at a university; it’s that I’m not looking for one. I’m very happy here.”
After sharing his unconventional arrangement, Flair Airlines reached out to Nassirian to lighten his load with a year’s supply of free airfare.
With files from Megan Devlin.